Nozzle testing before and after nozzle cleaning

a technology of nozzles and cleaning, applied in printing, other printing apparatus, etc., can solve the problems of inability to eject ink droplets, nozzles become clogged, and the viscosity of ink can increase to the point where ink droplets cannot be ejected from the nozzles

Inactive Publication Date: 2003-05-20
SEIKO EPSON CORP
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  • Summary
  • Abstract
  • Description
  • Claims
  • Application Information

AI Technical Summary

Problems solved by technology

Numerous nozzles are provided to the printing head of an ink jet printer, but there are instances when of some the nozzles become clogged and are unable to eject ink droplets due to an increase in the viscosity of the ink, the admixture of bubbles, or another such cause.
In particular, if an ink jet printer is left for an extended period without printing anything, the viscosity of the ink can increase to the point that ink droplets can no longer be ejected from the nozzles.
When a nozzle becomes clogged, dots will be missing in the image, which adversely affects image quality.
However, although some measures in the cleaning sequence and in the construction of the cleaning mechanism are taken and vary rare, there are cases rarely in which a nozzle that had not been clogged before cleaning becomes clogged as a result of cleaning.
In such a case, cleaning in an attempt to eliminate clogged nozzles can actually increase the likelihood of creating nozzle clogging.
With cleaning such as this, there is believed to be a likelihood that some nozzles which were not clogged prior to cleaning will be clogged after cleaning, although some measures in the cleaning sequence and in the construction of the cleaning mechanism are taken.
There is also the possibility that nozzles which are not clogged will become clogged when cleaned.

Method used

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  • Nozzle testing before and after nozzle cleaning
  • Nozzle testing before and after nozzle cleaning
  • Nozzle testing before and after nozzle cleaning

Examples

Experimental program
Comparison scheme
Effect test

fifth example

(3) Effect of the Fifth Example

In the fifth example, it is possible to carry out a cleaning operation for every nozzle set, and the nozzle set to be cleaned in step S101 is selected. No cleaning is performed for nozzle sets in which there are no non-operating nozzles. Accordingly, no ink is wasted by being drawn from the nozzles by suction.

Also, in the fifth example the cleaning of the nozzles is done in a sequence that includes a plurality of cleaning operations. A nozzle test is conducted in between each cleaning operation, and the cleaning is concluded at the point when there are no more non-operating nozzles. Thus, no time is spent or ink consumed performing unnecessary cleaning.

Furthermore, since cleaning operations with a higher likelihood of clearing the nozzle clogging are performed later, there is a greater probability that the clogging will be cleared as the sequence proceeds. Also, since the cleaning operations that consume a larger quantity of ink, such as S207, are posi...

sixth example

(2) Effect of the Sixth Example

A nozzle clogged with black ink is more difficult to clear than a nozzle clogged with an ink of another color. Thus, it is less likely that the clogging will be cleared with just ink suction (see FIG. 19) as in step S201 of the first cleaning sequence. In the sixth example, the second cleaning sequence is carried out when there is a black nozzle among the non-operating nozzles. Specifically, the cleaning operations of step S203 and beyond (see FIG. 20) are carried out without performing the cleaning operation of step S201. Thus, no ink is consumed performing cleaning with little likelihood of clearing the clog. The nozzle group K.sub.D corresponds to the "second nozzle group" referred to in the Claims, while the other nozzle group corresponds to the "first nozzle group" referred to in the Claims.

In the sixth example, if the non-operating nozzles include a nozzle from the second nozzle group, then the second cleaning sequence is executed, the first clea...

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Abstract

It is an object of the invention to provide a technique for reducing the likelihood that cleaning will cause nozzle clogging. In periodic automatic cleaning of a printer that is not being used, the ejecting of ink droplets from each nozzle is tested prior to the cleaning to determine whether each nozzle is an operating nozzle capable of ejecting ink droplets or a non-operating nozzle incapable of ejecting ink droplets. The nozzles are only cleaned if non-operating nozzles are detected. The testing of the nozzles is also automatically carried out after cleaning.

Description

1. Field of the InventionThe present invention relates to a technique for printing images by recording dots on the surface of a printing medium by ejecting ink droplets from a plurality of nozzles, and more particularly to a printing technique that utilizes a nozzle test for testing whether or not ink droplets are ejected from each nozzle.2. Description of the Related ArtInk jet printers print images by ejecting ink droplets from a plurality of nozzles. Numerous nozzles are provided to the printing head of an ink jet printer, but there are instances when of some the nozzles become clogged and are unable to eject ink droplets due to an increase in the viscosity of the ink, the admixture of bubbles, or another such cause. In particular, if an ink jet printer is left for an extended period without printing anything, the viscosity of the ink can increase to the point that ink droplets can no longer be ejected from the nozzles. When a nozzle becomes clogged, dots will be missing in the i...

Claims

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Application Information

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Patent Type & Authority Patents(United States)
IPC IPC(8): B41J2/165
CPCB41J2/16579B41J2002/1657
Inventor ENDO, HIRONORI
Owner SEIKO EPSON CORP
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